Namibia
Casualties and Victim Assistance
Casualties
The Republic of Namibia is responsible for survivors of landmines and explosive remnants of war (ERW) and has made commitments to provide victim assistance through the Mine Ban Treaty.
Casualties Overview
|
All known casualties by end 2014 |
619 (145 killed; 474 injured) |
In May 2014, a 21-year-old woman was injured following the explosion of a rifle grenade placed in a box of used military equipment in the city of Swakopmund.[1] Before this incident, the last reported casualties occurred in 2007, when there were 12 casualties from ERW.[2] The last known landmine casualty was in March 2005.[3]
At least 618 mine/ERW casualties have been recorded since 1999.
Following a peak in the number of casualties in 2000, the incidence of new mine/ERW casualties per year in Namibia has declined rapidly. In 2000, official statistics reported 14 people killed and 126 injured by mines/ERW. By 2002, this number had decreased to two people killed and 17 injured.[4] Between 1999 and December 2007, at least 145 civilians were killed and 473 injured by mines/ERW.[5]
Victim Assistance
Namibia has no specialized mine/ERW victim assistance coordination body or mechanism. The National Disability Council, established in 2004, coordinates and monitors implementation of disability policy in cooperation with disabled persons’ organizations, service providers, and government agencies.[6] Within the Office of the Prime Minister, a Disability Advisory Unit is responsible for overseeing concerns of persons with disabilities.[7]
Namibian law prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities and all new government buildings must be physically accessible, but enforcement has been ineffective and societal discrimination has persisted.[8]
Namibia ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on 4 December 2007.
[1] Floris Steenkamp, “Grenade explosion a wake-up call,” Informanté, 15 May 2014.
[2] ICBL, Landmine Monitor Report 2008: Toward a Mine-Free World (Ottawa: Mines Action Canada, 2008).
[3] Fax from John N. Alweendo, Chief Inspector, Namibian Police Force, 18 June 2007.
[4] ICBL, Landmine Monitor Report 2004: Toward a Mine-Free World (New York: Human Rights Watch, 2004).
[5] ICBL, Landmine Monitor Report 2008: Toward a Mine-Free World (Ottawa: Mines Action Canada, 2008).
[6] Government of Namibia, National Disability Council Act, 28 December 2004.
[7] United States (US) Department of State, “2013 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Namibia,” Washington, DC, 28 February 2014; and Office of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Namibia, Strategic Plan 2011–2016.
[8] US Department of State, “2013 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Namibia,” Washington, DC, 27 February 2014.